Effective Learners And A Learner-centered Classroom (part 1 Of
By Douglas Brown, Sat Dec 10th

Each learner and each learning experience is unique; yeteducators can identify patterns in the learning process.Designing effective learning requirements requires a clearunderstanding of, and attention to, both commonalities anddifferences in the learners and the learning.

Since ancient times, the learning process has been a subject ofstudy for philosophers, educators, and scientists. Thiscuriosity continues to drive forward the methodologies used in aclassroom. One major change in educational philosophy brought onby this research is the shift in paradigm from ateacher-centered classroom to a learner-centered classroom. Thisshift makes the students (learners) more responsible for theireducation, forcing them to draw upon previously learned skillsin order to learn new materiel. Gone, then, is the simple taskof memorization; replaced with an active, educational process.How does a teacher create a learner-centered classroom? Simple;by following these eight suggestions (the first four given now,the second four given in my next installment), a teacher can notonly create a learner-centered classroom, but also shift his/herclassroom position from simple lecturer to a knowledgefacilitator.

Step 1: Effective learners link new information to priorknowledge.

Meaningful and lasting learning is a cumulative process thatconnects previously learned material with new knowledge.Background knowledge creates a context and foundation for newmaterial. Unsuccessful students often do not have the skills forlinking previous learning to new information. They often lackessential retrieval strategies. Prior knowledge and experienceremains inaccessible for these students.

The instructional challenge is to help students get in touchwith what they already know. Learners need a repertoire ofstrategies to help them access this knowledge, as well asstrategies for organizing new information into patterns thatwill help them make connections and integrate newunderstandings. Some strategies that can aid in this processinclude (but are not limited to):

1.Visualizations of past learning experiences.

2.Quick (five minute) reviews.

3.Brainstorming and grouping.

4.Venn Diagrams.

5.Semantic mapping.

6.Group or class discussions.

Step 2: Effective learners engage with process and contextsimultaneously.

Motivating students' mental engagement is critical tosuccessful education. Engaging instruction is student-centered,designed to instill a sense of wonderment, build self-esteem,and foster creativity. Open-ended experiences, with no "right orwrong" answers allow students to practice generatingalternatives to simple memorization of facts, and choose actionsand answers based on judgment and not just what they think theteacher wants to hear. In this way, context comes alive asknowledge and skills are applied in context actively andinteractively.

When students are given a choice in the when, what, and how oflearning, they are more likely to embrace learning goals andincrease their commitment to learning tasks. This idea isparticularly important

to students who feel they have littlecontrol over many aspects of their lives. Teachers who provideflexibility will most often get a higher level of responsibilityfrom their students. Methods to accomplish this include:

1.Choices in assignment time frames.

2.Various levels of difficulty for assignments.

3.Different formats for final products.

4.Different methods for task completion.

5.Options for either individual or peer work.

Step 3: Effective learners access and organizeinformation.

The ability to organize information is fundamental to effectivethinking and learning. Skilled learners are able to organizeinformation by recognizing and developing patterns both "in andout of the box."

Learning-focused teachers move from isolated skills lessons tolearning strategies lessons, sending the message to studentsthat information gains value when we understand it and apply it.In this way, students gain a tool kit for building, shaping, andconnecting information. Teaching students various organizationaltools (along with constantly modeling them) provides cues forthinking, frameworks for accessing and retaining information,and the transfer of learning to other settings. This tool kitcan contain:

1.Venn diagrams.

2.Story maps.

3.Concept maps.

4.Graphically displayed patterns and connections.

5.Sequence charts.

Step 4: Effective learners require international and externalmediation.

In a meditative learning environment, open-ended questions arethe norm and both praise and criticism are limited. Students areencouraged to articulate "thinking in progress" as theyexperiment with both ideas and materials. The goal here is totransfer the external meditative voice of the teacher to theinner voice of the student. This self-talk andstudent-to-student talk guides the work on topics at hand andprovides ways of focusing on and thinking about the materials athand.

Meditative teachers and their learners mutually developchallenging goals and criteria for success for units andprojects. Reflection and self-assessment along the way arecritical components of such classrooms. To accomplish internaland external mediation, these tools help:

1.Journals (single-subject and general thought).

2.Learning logs.

The concept of learning and teaching has come a long way fromthe simple lecture. Teachers now need to take a proactive handin aiding and developing the learning process as well asteaching students how to learn. Unfortunately, most standardfour-week TEFL courses do not include this kind of informationduring their learning and certification process. It is my hopethat these first four suggestions for creating alearning-centered classroom augment your prior knowledge gainedthrough training and experience.

About the author:Douglas Brown is a moderator and writer for http://www.totalesl.com, a free resourcehelping the ESL/EFL community in Asia and the Middle East forjobs, resumes, schools, resources, yellow pages, classifieds,information and lessons. TotalESL.com-First Stop for Your Second LangaugeNeeds